


Zero Hour

by fanficlady74 (Raquel24)



Category: Machine Robo | GoBots
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-30
Updated: 2016-09-27
Packaged: 2018-07-27 13:06:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7619254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raquel24/pseuds/fanficlady74
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Treason and infighting among the Renegades leaves them more dangerous than ever when Cy-Kill finds himself forced to go all alone on the run, while Zero, now combining forces with the Master Renegade, assumes command of the Renegades.  What does this mean for the future of the planet Gobotron?  Are the Guardians on the verge of losing their war with the Renegades once and for all??</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Riot on Rogue Star

**Author's Note:**

> This is a "movie-length" sequel to the first and, sadly, the only full season of the animated TV series "Challenge of the GoBots." It is set in a continuity which diverges following the events of the 65th and final episode broadcast. That means that the big-screen movie, "GoBots: Battle of the Rock Lords" is not canon in this particular continuity.
> 
> My main inspiration for this project was the series of "Alien Nation" TV movies which came after the cancellation of that short-lived live-action sci-fi TV series. I plan to do three more of these, at the rate of one per year, in 2017, 2018, and 2019.
> 
> And finally, whereas most of my fanfics tend to be dark and deconstructive, my GoBots project is a joyful exercise in pure, unadulterated nostalgia, suitable for all ages.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At a meeting of the Planetary Council of Gobotron, four successive speakers -- Guardian High Councilor Zeemon, Guardian commander Leader-1, and, from Earth via satellite, UNECOM commander General Newcastle and the precognitive Myra -- recap what has come before, assess the respective situations of both planets, and reveal bad tidings on the horizon. Simultaneously, the Renegades' ever-scheming leader, Cy-Kill, is taken completely by surprise when a Renegade civil war erupts inside the Renegades' gigantic space-station-slash-battleship headquarters, Rogue Star.

THE PLANET GOBOTRON, LOCATED DEEP IN OUTER SPACE NEAR THE MILKY WAY...

Inside a vast citadel, located in the heart of the planet's capital city of Gobotalis, and housing the Council of the Guardians of Gobotron, a meeting of urgent importance was about to take place. Lord High Councilor Zeemon, the oldest and wisest of the Guardian Gobots, was presiding. As he prepared to make his opening statements, he glanced from his vantage point at the head of the conference table, in order to remind himself of the identities of the four remaining councilors: Leader-1, the Guardians' field commander and chief strategist; Turbo, the tougher-than-steel first lieutenant; Blaster, the "seen-it-all" veteran of many Gobot battles across the galaxy; and, finally, Man O'War, the youngest, hardest, least tenured, and most impulsive of the councilors. Satisfied, Zeemon proceeded to speak.

"The meeting of the Council shall come to order. I think it best we begin with the good news -- the joint Earth/Gobotron colonization of the planet New Earth has been flourishing since over one year ago, when the Guardians drove the invading Renegades away from the surface of New Earth. With the Gobots' organic humanoid progenitor, the Last Engineer, as both the planet's chief architect and its head of security, a bright future indeed is being predicted for New Earth.

"Alas, this New Earth report provides an all-too-convenient segue into the first item of bad news: the Master Renegade, evil nemesis to the Last Engineer -- and also an organic humanoid -- remains at large in the galaxy after escaping during the battle for New Earth. Worse yet, our latest intelligence places him within the vicinity of the last known location of the Renegade headquarters, Rogue Star. This gigantic combination battleship and space station has managed to continue eluding the Guardians' detection thanks to the Renegades' stealth device. Rumors of Rogue Star's destruction were long ago confirmed to be greatly exaggerated. 

"Additionally, the one-year anniversary of the last battle to date in the Guardian-Renegade War is almost upon us at present. For quite some time, many Guardians and Gobot civilians have dared to hope that the War is over at last. But recent intel has it that all of the Renegades, including their diabolical commander, Cy-Kill -- who continues to top Gobotron's Most Wanted List -- are each and every one fully repaired and recovered, and are about to reassert themselves through Cy-Kill latest plan."

MEANWHILE, ABOARD THE RENEGADES' ELUSIVE BATTLESHIP ROGUE STAR...

Standing tall and proud on the bridge of Rouge Star, Cy-Kill was indeed confiding his latest plan to his elite guard -- Fitor, his first lieutenant; Cop-Tur, his chief enforcer; and Crasher, the wickedest and most gleefully sadistic Gobot of them all -- with the help of visual aids on the bridge's main monitor.

"This," announced Cy-Kill in his stentorian baritone, "shall prove at long last that I am never to be underestimated, least of all by the blasted Guardians! Before engaging in our last major battle against them -- which, I need not remind you, ended with us retreating in dismal defeat -- I had the foresight to place the Renegades' top spy, Snoop, as our sleeper agent on Earth. She continues to await inside a hangar belonging to UNECOM, the Earth's first line of defense and research, where she is locked in vehicle mode, pretending to be the prototype of an experimental fighter jet. As long as her higher functions remain on standby, she is undetectable to Guardians and Earthlings alike. All that is required is for me to transmit the secret coded message which will reactivate her higher functions, and our enemies will never known what hit them. That will be our cue to launch our invasion armada of Thruster warships, while simultaneously, Snoop will matter-transport our mightiest Renegade warriors directly to the surface of the Earth, via Astro-Beam. Earth shall finally be ours, and from there, we will launch our conquest of Gobotron!"

Crasher replied by laughing her trademark long, loud, infectiously hearty laugh, "HAAAAAA HA HA HA HA HAA." 

"Brilliant strategy, Cy-Kill." declared Fitor.

"Stinking yes-bot." muttered Crasher, whose sudden mood swing was rooted in a long-running rivalry with Fitor.

Little did Cy-Kill or any of his Renegade elites suspect that two of their nastiest underlings, the monstrous duo of Scorp and Vamp, had been plotting treason for some time, and were now on the verge of executing sabotage aboard Rogue Star. The only Renegade who suspected them was the equally devilish Pincher, who had often worked with them on field missions, making for a menacing trio. However, Pincher's loyalty had always been strictly to Cy-Kill. Pincher knew intuitively that something was not quite right with his frequent partners in terror, while also realizing that they lacked the intelligence and the vision to be working only for themselves. If, Pincher thought to himself, he could identify the mysterious masterminds behind this plot, Cy-Kill would be so grateful he might even reward Pincher with a promotion.

At that moment, in a dark corner of Rogue Star, as Scorp wheezed and Vamp cackled, Pincher thought he had found an opportunity to sneak up behind the hideous duo and get the jump on them before they turned on Cy-Kill. But as Pincher took aim at Scorp and Vamp with the intention of blasting them both in the back, he realized that they were not the only conspirators among the Renegades. Pincher's heightened insectoid senses alerted him to the approach of another Gobot (or was it more than one?) from behind him. Weapons still primed, Pincher whirled around, only to take multiple plasma-ray blasts directly to his chest-plate, which damaged his most vital components and left him unconscious. Scorp and Vamp heard the commotion, and they ambled over to greet their quartet of mysterious Gobots-in-arms.

"Your help is much appreciated," said Vamp, "although we could have handled him ourselves."

"Shall we melt Pincher down for scrap?" rasped Scorp wickedly.

"No," Vamp objected, "let's hide him in a storage bin for now, and when the overthrow of Cy-Kill is completed, Pincher might just come around to our way of thinking. That is, if he values his life."

Scorp and the shadowy quartet all nodded in agreement with the once-again cackling Vamp.

GOBOTRON...

"...and finally," said Zeemon, "we must also be alert to the rogue Renegades who operate independently of Cy-Kill, and whose agendas may prove to be even deadlier than his. Need I remind you of Zero, the cunning terrorist who threw Gobotron into temporary chaos and tried to set up Leader-1 and Cy-Kill to destroy each other? I regret to say that his name, too, has been turning up in our latest intelligence reports. And on that note, I urge all of you to stay vigilant as I turn over the floor to Leader-1."

"Thank you, Zeemon." said Leader-1. "My own greatest concern is the alarmingly low number of new Guardian recruits who have shown genuine potential. This leads me to believe that the civilian populace of Gobotron has grown increasingly, and counter-productively, complacent in peace-time. What I am about to propose may seem drastic, but given the ominous intel which Zeemon spoke of just now, I move that we place the planet Gobotron on Yellow Alert. Furthermore, I believe that we urgently need to put together a special Guardian task force. Their mission: to locate and reconnoiter Rogue Star, and, if it comes down to it, to breach Rogue Star and destroy it once and for all.

"There is also the matter of our alliance with the planet Earth, and our responsibility to protect our human friends at all costs. To that end, we have recently, with the invaluable help of UNECOM, formed the Guardians' official Earth Force team to better serve the needs of our planetary ally. For more on that, I now turn over the floor to the head of UNECOM, General Newcastle, who is now appearing, via interstellar conference-call, on this room's main monitor."

"Thank you, Leader-1." said the General, a solidly built, middle-aged African-American man whose rich, deep voice conveyed his considerable authority. "Earth Force is, undeniably, a significant upgrade in maintaining the security of planet Earth, and I speak for all of humanity when I express gratitude to the Guardians. With Path Finder as Earth Force leader, Small Foot and Scooter as her Lieutenants, and a host of other Guardians to patrol the planet on land, sea, and air, and with the continued performances above and beyond the call of duty of our principal human operatives -- Matt Hunter, Anya Turgenova, and the ever-youthful Nick & A.J. -- I am fully confident that the Gobotron/Earth coalition will continue to synergize for everybody's mutual benefit.

"Having said that, I also believe that there is also no such as thing as over-caution when it comes to the safety of our planets. And that, sometimes, a more unconventional approach is needed so that no stone is left unturned. To that end, I present to you Earth Force's resident psychic, Myra, who will now share her most recent precognitive visions."

ROGUE STAR...

As Cop-Tur did his security rounds of the interior of Rogue Star, he felt a rare sense of joy lingering within him, thanks to Cy-Kill's confidential announcement of the imminent act of war to reignite the Renegades conflict against the Guardians and the Earthlings. To Cop-Tur's simple mind, the heat of battle was where fates were sealed and legends were forged. After all these years, he had never tired of combat, and the extended waiting for the renewal of hostilities had been driving his restless self stir-crazy.

Walking down the corridor which brought him near to Rogue Star's docking bay, Cop-Tur was surprised to find Scorp and Vamp apparently loitering around that area. As far as Cop-Tur knew, there were no ships currently scheduled to arrive at Rogue Star. Scorp and Vamp, he thought, were most likely being pests as usual, and this annoyed him.

"Whaddya think you're doin' here?" asked Cop-Tur.

"Oh...we're just waiting." replied Scorp cryptically.

"Waitin' for what?" retorted Cop-Tur impatiently.

"Why, for you, my dearest simpleton." cackled Vamp as her ocular sensors lined up with Cop-Tur's ocular sensors, and she quickly hypnotized him with the greatest of ease. "Now tell me, Cop-Tur, who do you serve?"

"I serve you, mistress." mumbled Cop-Tur blankly.

"Precisely." said Vamp triumphantly. "Now then, I command you to enter the override code, which only Cy-Kill and his confidants such as yourself know, and open the outside entrance to the docking bay. We have some surprise guests arriving, and we must not keep them waiting."

"As you command." replied Cop-Tur obediently.

While Vamp and Scorp shared a hearty laugh at the hapless Cop-Tur's expense, a small space cruiser, equipped with the same kind of Stealth Device which kept Rogue Star cloaked, was nearing the coordinates given to its pilot by Vamp and Scorp. Said coordinates would take them to the exact location of the entrance to Rogue Star, which was now opening to let the cruiser in. Within the cruiser, the pilot and the two passengers prepared to shock Cy-Kill with their presence.

GOBOTRON...

Myra related her visions of the possible, though not immutable, near-future in a soothing alto voice, which somehow, made them all the more disturbing. "I see Guardians fighting Guardians, Renegades fighting Renegades, all leading to a drastic change in the status quo. I see a series of unholy alliances, a series of titanic battles on more than one front, and most terrifying of all, the irrevocable destruction of...no, I can't tell whether it's Gobotron or Rogue Star!" She paused, then relaxed her posture, and sighed, "That's all I can see with clarity at the moment. Everything else is in a haze."

ROGUE STAR...

"And where do you think you're going, sludge-for-brains?" Crasher asked acidly of the obviously addled Cop-Tur -- or rather, she thought, the dullard was even more addled than he usually was.

"Whuh...w-w-where am I?" inquired the bewildered Cop-Tur.

"When you didn't report back to the bridge, Cy-Kill sent me to find you, and find you I did -- walking into walls and wandering about like a chicken-bot with its head cut off. So tell me, Cop-Tur, what's gotten into you THIS time?"

"Into me? Now I remember! Vamp did her mind-control thing to me."

"Oh, no! What did she force you to do?"

"I...I opened the entrance to the docking bay without setting off the alarms!"

"Ohhhhhh, Cy-Kill is NOT going to be happy about THIS..." As Crasher quavered those words, she reached over and activated the nearest alarm, then began running towards the docking bay. Cop-Tur followed close behind, stumbling clumsily.

GOBOTRON...

"In conclusion," asserted Zeemon after the floor had been turned over back to him, "I reiterate that there is, at this time, no such thing as excessive vigilance. The tidings are not good, not good at all, but I believe that, through preparedness and alertness, we can put out the blazing fire of renewed warfare before it even has an opportunity to ignite! With that, I declare this conference adjourned. We will reconvene as soon as possible for updates. Take care of yourselves, my fellow Guardians."

"Leader-1, can Man O'War and I have a brief word with you?" inquired Blaster as the Councilors began to exit the room.

"Yes?" replied Leader-1, "What is it?"

"Blaster and I are in agreement that you have the right idea with the Anti-Rouge-Star squad," said Man O'War, "but we don't see the need to hesitate before we strike. What we propose is a proactive, no-holds-barred assault on Rogue Star, ASAP. Get in, trash the big tub for good, get out, problem solved!"

"I'm surprised to hear you say that." asserted Leader-1. "I had thought you'd come around to seeing the futility of sinking to the Renegades' level."

"I've reconsidered," stated Man O'War plainly, "and I've come to the conclusion that a more permanent solution is needed to take down the Renegades once and for all."

"I concur." said Blaster. "The last battle may have brought temporary peace, but ultimately, the live-and-let-live approach to war is like trying to patch up a gaping wound with cheap tin." 

"We'll discuss all of this at the next meeting." was Leader-1's stiff response before bolting out of the room.

"By then it might be too late." huffed Blaster at Leader-1's back, and Man O'War nodded morosely in agreement.

ROGUE STAR...

In their frantic desperation to reach the docking bay before the situation could escalate further out of control, Crasher and Cop-Turn ended up running right into an ambush.

They had been expecting Scorp and Vamp to be waiting to pounce on them, but what they had not been prepared for was the presence on Rogue Star of the Master Renegade. The white-haired humanoid, while quite fit in body, did not appear to the naked eye a threat to a pair of fifteen-foot-tall Gobot warriors, but the Master Renegade packed a powerful plasma-ray pistol, and his cybernetically-enhanced left eye gave his aim near-perfect accuracy. He shot Cop-Tur point blank in the chest-plate, and while Crasher's reflexes were quicker, the shot fired at her did manage to do considerable damage to her shoulder.

"You'll PAY for THAT, you fleshy PARASITE!" screamed Crasher as she stomped her foot on the ground, activating her deadly trademark electro-shockwave weapon. But the Master Renegade's extraordinary agility enabled him to leap out of the range of Crasher's shockwave.

Distracted as she was by the Master Renegade's resourcefulness, Crasher had left herself open to getting struck by one of Scorp's trademark venom-rays, emitted from his stinger. She fell on her back, landing on the floor next to Cop-Tur.

"Creepy, if you would do the honors..." said the Master Renegade to his most loyal acolyte, a purple monster GoBot with crab-like claws in both robot and creature modes.

"My pleasure, Master." replied Creepy cheerfully as the pair of claws on his right arm opened up and shot out a large electrified net, which settled on top of Crasher and Cop-Tur. When they awoke, they would find themselves tangled up in it.

"I only hope our allies are doing as well as we are." chuckled the Master Renegade.

MEANWHILE...

At that very moment, on Rogue Star's bridge, Fitor was frantically trying to catch some glimpse of the ship's saboteurs before yet another monitor went blank. "Whoever's behind this really knows their stuff." he said.

"Tell me something I DON'T know!" replied Cy-Kill as he paced around the bridge over and over.

The unmistakable sound of multiple Gobot plasma-ray weapons being fired simultaneously did not escape the attentions of Cy-Kill and Fitor, nor did the sight of the door of the bridge turning red-hot and sporting huge dents. "So," declared Cy-Kill, "they intend to beard me in my own lair? How very foolhardy of them."

"Let's teach them to never mess with us again." said Fitor, priming his weapons at the door in anticipation of the enemy breach. "Not," Fitor added, "that they're gonna have a chance to try again."

The attackers finally succeeded at blowing up the door and charging onto the bridge, firing their built-in weapons in all directions. Fitor's brain worked fast enough in conjunction with his ocular sensors to recognize the attackers as he returned fire with great accuracy -- they were all Renegades who had clearly turned on Cy-Kill: Bad Boy, Stretch, Geeper-Creeper and Twin Spin. Something about this particular quartet seemed familiar to Fitor, but he was too busy defending both himself and Cy-Kill to think any more about it.

"Maneuver Gamma." muttered Cy-Kill to Fitor. "You got it." replied Fitor, who began laying down cover fire by redoubling his barrage at the turncoats. He managed to hit Geeper-Creeper in the right leg, and to graze Twin Spin's head. This gave Cy-Kill the desired temporary clearing through which to escape via the bridge's blown-apart doorway.

Frustrated that their main target had gotten away, Bad Boy and Stretch double-teamed on Fitor, their vicious shots knocking him against the wall. As he felt himself losing consciousness, Fitor finally realized why this group of traitors seemed so familiar. Of course, thought Fitor, there was only one GoBot who could have planned this out so brilliantly.

Cy-Kill found it humiliating to be running like a rat-bot through his own ship. But it was still his ship, and he knew every inch like the back of his hand. He was confident that he would soon reach the last-resort emergency-escape Astro Beam projector he had long ago hidden away in one of the least accessible sections of Rogue Star. It was pre-programmed to send him to a secret Renegade base, and he had taken steps so that it would only respond to his command. But confidence can only carry you so far when you are confronted with the last possible thing you ever wanted to see again.

"NO!" roared Cy-Kill as he forced himself to a sudden stop.

"YES!" retorted the one GoBot who had ever been a serious threat to Cy-Kill's supremacy over the Renegades, and whom Cy-Kill now stood face-to-face with: Zero.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What Leader-1 is suggesting -- breaching and destroying Rogue Star -- had been attempted once previously by the Guardians, in the classic episode "The Quest for Rogue Star." Unfortunately for the Guardians, the Renegades tricked them at episode's end into believing that they had accomplished their mission, and had a good laugh at their expense.
> 
> Zero had previously formed a band of Renegade Rogues, and nearly succeeded in wiping out Guardians and Renegades alike, in the classic episode "The Third Column."
> 
> Zero's Rogues in "The Third Column" were Bad Boy, Twin Spin, Stretch, and Geeper-Creeper, so it is clear that they have all retained some degree of loyalty to him.
> 
> Zero only made one more appearance, in the episode "Et Tu, Cy-Kill!", and it was in a flashback.
> 
> The Master Renegade first appeared in the "Gobotron Saga" five-part episode, at the end of which he double-crossed Cy-Kill and was imprisoned by the Renegades for treason.
> 
> Fitor proved himself unswervingly loyal to Cy-Kill in the episode "Fitor to the Finish."
> 
> Crasher's dislike of Fitor was quite blatant in the episode "Fitor to the Finish."
> 
> The episode in which the Guardian-Renegade War reached what at least the Guardians regarded as a turning point was "Mission: Gobotron," though this was not the last episode broadcast.
> 
> Man O'War made his first and only appearance in "Mission: Gobotron." His hawkish contrariness was clearly established there, although by the end, he appeared (unconvincingly, in this viewer's opinion) to have come around to Leader-1's live-and-let-live way of thinking.
> 
> Blaster showed hints of a colorful, adventuresome past in the "Invasion from the 21st Level" two-part episode.
> 
> New Earth was introduced in the actual last episode broadcast, "Quest for New Earth," at the end of which the Master Renegade escaped with Creepy's help.
> 
> The Last Engineer (who does not appear in this story but will appear in my next Gobots story, now scheduled to be ready for posting by autumn 2017) was introduced in the "Gobotron Saga" five-part episode. His next appearance was in the episode "Quest for New Earth," where he faced off against his nemesis, the Master Renegade, then decided at episode's end to settle on New Earth and help the colonists.
> 
> Scorp & Vamp first appeared in the "Gobotron Saga" five-part episode, initially as the Master Renegade's goons; in order to bring them over to Cy-Kill's side, Doctor Go rebuilt a fatally damaged generic GoBot into the similarly monstrous Pincher, who succeeded in his mission, though obviously not in the long run.
> 
> In the episode "Quest for New Earth," Scorp & Vamp rebelled against Cy-Kill and freed the Master Renegade, only to prove themselves utterly mercenary when they switched back over to Cy-Kill's side at the episode's climax. Thus, it is not unthinkable that the Master Renegade could, at some date in the one-year gap between the TV series and this story, have approached them and convinced them to flip-flop yet again.
> 
> Creepy is at the center of one of the many continuity goofs in "Challenge of the GoBots". In his first appearance, in "Guardian Academy," he was clearly one of Cy-Kill's Renegades, but in his second and last appearance, in "Quest for New Earth," he was loyal only to the Master Renegade.
> 
> Myra made her first and only appearance in the episode "Renegade Carnival," which, while not a great episode, did suggest some potential for her as a character.
> 
> Should readers have any remaining questions about this chapter, I would advise them to please visit the web's best "Challenge of the GoBots" resource:
> 
> http://counter-x.net/gobots/challenge/index.html


	2. Renegade on the Run!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The chase is on aboard Rogue Star! Cy-Kill is running for his very life, determined to fight off anyone who gets in the way of him reaching the specially pre-programmed Astro Beam which will transport him to a secret contingency base in a remote corner of the galaxy...but only if he can activate it before the other Renegades blow him away! And if Cy-Kill is marked for death, then what sinister plans does Zero have for Cy-Kill's three remaining loyalists among the Renegades -- Fitor, Crasher, and Cop-Tur?

Zero opened fire on Cy-Kill, unleashing the considerable power of his special weapons, which, unlike the plasma-ray blasters built into most Gobots, fired rapid bursts of small plasma projectiles, capable of inflicting great damage with only a single barrage.

Cy-Kill responded with split-second timing and amazing reflexes, converting to motorcycle mode at just the right moment, which resulted in Zero's projectiles going straight over Cy-Kill's head, leaving him undamaged. Before Zero could make his next move, Cy-Kill had already revved up his engines and charged point-blank at Zero. Cy-Kill rammed his would-be usurper directly in the chest-plate with tremendous force. Zero flew backwards a short distance before landing hard on his back.

Not wasting a millisecond, Cy-Kill sped around the fallen Zero and continued on his course to the location where he had hidden the pre-programmed Astro Beam projector which would enable his escape from Rogue Star. As he sped ahead, Cy-Kill swore to himself that there would be a proper reckoning with Zero at some point sooner rather than later, but at the moment, a sensible tactical retreat was his top priority.

But before he could fully refocus on the task at hand, Cy-Kill was confronted with the alarming sight of Stretch, one of Zero's acolytes, speeding towards him in car mode. Worse yet, Stretch had the Master Renegade inside of him, leaning out the driver-seat window and firing his powerful plasma handgun at Cy-Kill. Executing a spectacular swerve, especially considering the narrowness of Rogue Star's corridors, Cy-Kill raced past Stretch. The Master Renegade continued firing as Cy-Kill got further away from them. Stretch, for his part, made a full 180 degree turn, scraping his front and back ends against the walls while his tires screeched shrilly and left skid marks on the floor. As he engaged in pursuit of Cy-Kill, Stretch had not counted on one of his tires getting dislodged thanks to the sharp turn he had just done. This, in turn, caused Stretch's weight to shift to the location of the loosened tire, with the end result of him losing control and being unable to execute the 90 degree turn directly ahead. Right before Stretch smashed loudly in the wall, the Master Renegade jumped out, gun still in hand, and rolled along the floor until he came to a stop. He then ran past the wreck that Stretch had now become, turning the corner to find himself facing Cy-Kill, glaring at him hatefully with his optical sensors while revving up once again. "It may be foolish of me," snarled Cy-Kill, "and it may get me killed, but anything is worth the pleasure of crushing you beneath my wheels...little man!" Right after that declaration, Cy-Kill charged full-throttle towards the Master Renegade who, if he was scared, hid it very well, instinctively taking aim at Cy-Kill with his bionic eye and firing at Cy-Kill's front wheel. Losing control, Cy-Kill flipped over before landing hard on top of Stretch.

The loss of face and the realization of having just performed a self-defeating stunt were made even more painful for Cy-Kill as he heard the Master Renegade laughing loudly at him. Converting back to robot mode, Cy-Kill got back on his feet just in time to see Geeper-Creeper coming straight at him in jeep mode. Geeper then pulled a clever bait-and-switch, converting to robot mode at the last second and using the momentum to body-slam Cy-Kill.

Not wasting a second, Cy-Kill did his best to shut out the pain coursing through his circuitry as he gained leverage and used it to toss Geeper to the side. He then narrowly dodged a shot from the Master Renegade's gun. Cy-Kill was reluctant to run away, but he was sensible enough to know it was all he could do if he was to survive to fight another day and regain leadership of the Renegades. But for good measure, Cy-Kill stopped once he was out of the firing range of his enemy's gun and fired a plasma-blast at the ceiling. The resulting debris would slow down the pursuit from his enemies...hopefully long enough for Cy-Kill to reach his hidden Astro Beam projector.

MEANWHILE, IN ROGUE STAR'S DUNGEON...

Crasher and Cop-Tur were each sitting in a separate corner of one of the dungeon's cells, both of them sulking silently and staring at the walls, except for the occasional glance at the neuro-bonds which had been placed on both their wrists by Zero's acolytes, to prevent the two Cy-Kill loyalists from using either their built-in weapons or their conversion capabilities.

Unexpectedly, their attention was drawn towards the laser bars which kept them inside the cell. Said bars were now fading, but if either of them was entertaining the notion of making a break for freedom in spite of the neuro-bonds, it didn't show in their demeanor. But Crasher was, to say the least, displeased when she saw Bad Boy and Twin Spin throw another Gobot into their cell. Namely, the third and last Cy-Kill loyalist aboard Rogue Star and Crasher's personal bete-noire, Fitor. Once he was in, the laser bars were reactivated and Zero's acolytes walked away.

"As if things couldn't get any WORSE!" she groaned, glaring at Fitor.

"Uh...I think he's conscious, and he heard you say that." replied Cop-Tur.

"Yes?" hissed Crasher in response, before adding more loudly, "AND?"

"Very funny, Crasher." snapped Fitor sarcastically. "I would have hoped that even you would have the sense to realize that we're all in this together now, whether we like it or not."

"What do you want to do about it?" sneered Crasher. "Start a campfire and have a sing-along??"

"No," replied Fitor patiently, "I want us to formulate an escape plan. After all, Cy-Kill shared the confidential location of his contingency base with the three of us, and no one else. What we need to do is break out, steal a Thruster ship, and speed over there. I'm certain that, even as we speak, Cy-Kill has managed to escape and is on his way there."

AT THAT MOMENT...

Fitor was only partially right. Cy-Kill still had his hard-won freedom, but he had not quite reached the Astro Beam which would take him to safety. As he made his way through the less accessible sections of Rogue Star, he had had to slow down by necessity. Which was actually something of a relief to him, considering how he ached all over after the injuries he had suffered during the earlier part of his escape.

What Cy-Kill did not suspect, despite his battle-hardened instincts, was that Bad Boy and Twin Spin were stealthily stalking him from a fair distance behind. They had come to the conclusion that, where Zero's other acolytes had failed with the direct approach, a more cunning tactic would assure Cy-Kill's ultimate destruction.

"I almost feel sorry for him." whispered Twin Spin. "He's obviously in great pain."

"Compassion," replied Bad Boy softly, "will only get you killed."

MEANWHILE...

As soon as the trio of Cy-Kill loyalists heard footsteps clanking on the floor outside their cell, they ceased their animated discussion. When they saw who had been approaching the cell, they knew they had done the smart thing. Because it was none other than Zero, the usurper, himself.

"I have good news for you." he addressed the prisoners with sarcasm and contempt. "Your solitude and suffering shall not be prolonged...because I have decided that you are to be executed in full view of all my Renegades, 48 hours from now! That is all."

The prisoners merely glared silently at Zero, because, after all, what could they possibly say in response to such a statement? After a moment, Zero walked away, reeking of smug self-satisfaction.

MEANWHILE...

Having at last reached the Astro Beam, still in the tiny sub-section within the cargo hold where he had left it, a weary Cy-Kill mused grimly that perhaps he had hidden it too well. He felt as if he was going to black out, but he bit the plasma bullet and soldiered on, typing in the code which would activate the Astro Beam and teleport him out of Rogue Star and into his contingency base.

Suddenly, a kick at the sub-section's door rang out. A couple more kicks later, the door came down and Bad Boy barged in, his Twin Spin in tow, both with their weapons at the ready.

As the Astro Beam pulsated into action, Cy-Kill found himself unable to do anything but glare at the traitors with utter loathing. His mind reeled with pithy put-downs and defiant threats of reprisal, but in the end he was simply too tired of it all.

Bad Boy and Twin Spin had nothing to say, either. They let their built-in plasma-blasters do all their talking, firing point-blank at Cy-Kill.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Should readers have any questions about this chapter, I would advise them to please visit the web's best "Challenge of the GoBots" resource:
> 
> http://counter-x.net/gobots/challenge/index.html


	3. Hideaway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alive and well, Cy-Kill recovers from his injuries at Exoplanet Alpha, and reminisces about his distant past, specifically his time as a Guardian sergeant. What will be Cy-Kill's next move, and what will be the repercussions for both the Guardians and the Renegades?

Once the smoke had cleared, Bad Boy and Twin Spin beheld metallic debris all over the floor. At first, they were satisfied that they had been successful in destroying Cy-Kill, but after they had inspected the debris, doubts set in.

"Eh," grumbled Bad Boy, "this could all just be what's left of the Astro Beam projector. I thought we'd gotten to him right before he could escape, but now I'm not so sure."

"What are we going to tell Zero?" asked Twin Spin.

After a moment's thought, Bad Boy replied, "Even if he was teleported away, it's possible that we were able to destroy the projector before it could complete the transfer. Which would mean he's trapped forever in the quantum slipstream."

"Works for me." shrugged Twin Spin.

MOMENTARILY...

In fact, Cy-Kill had survived, and the transfer had been fully successful, if only by a micro-fraction of a second. Cy-Kill looked over his surroundings for a minute, and once he realized he had indeed arrived at Exoplanet Alpha, the name he had given to his secret contingency base, he felt a wave of relief washing over him. But only his still-sharp reflexes enabled him to stop himself from collapsing on the floor and shutting down permanently. He was not in good condition, and he knew it well. With every step an excruciatingly painful one, he nonetheless was able to walk into the base's automated repair bay, punch in the appropriate code to activate the repairs program, and lay himself down upon the large slab in the middle of the room.

With ambient vibrations serving as anesthetics for Cy-Kill during the repair procedures, the weary Gobot found himself drifting into sleep mode. And along with that came a flood of memories -- memories of what had been better times, or which at seemed that way in hindsight. He temporarily de-activated his ocular sensors and lost himself in the past.

GOBOTRON, CENTURIES AGO...

"A-ten-TION!" commanded Sergeant Cy-Kill of the Guardian squadron he led, which in a short time had earned themselves the nickname "Force Five from Gobotron," along with a fearsome reputation among the Renegades as a ruthlessly effective military unit with a take-no-prisoners attitude in the heat of battle.

Satisfied that his warriors were fully alert and awaiting his inspection, Cy-Kill relaxed his intimidating posture slightly, put his hands behind his back, and said, "At ease." Slowly and silently, Cy-Kill walked past each of his warriors, assessing their personalities and capabilities in his head:

Blaster, Cy-Kill felt, had been the fastest learner and shown the greatest potential; with the impressive ability to convert into a powerful missile tank, he was the unit's point man more often than not, never making any serious errors in combat; Cy-Kill could tell that Blaster was ambitious and driven, and he would be going places in the not-too-distant future.

Heat Seeker, confident almost to the degree of outright cockiness, provided invaluable air support as the only Force Fiver who could fly in both Gobot and vehicle (fighter jet) modes. If only, thought Cy-Kill, he didn't let this go to his head sometimes, Heat Seeker might one day realize his full capabilities.

Dozer, the team's taciturn muscle, whose conversion mode was a treaded bulldozer, provided the unit with both fighting power and peerless demolition tactics. He was not the smartest Gobot, but he had all the physical advantages he needed to consistently distinguish himself in the battlefield.

Finally, there was Sparky. She may have been the only female Gobot within Force Five, but by now she had already proven a thousand times over that she was no token. Her speed in both Gobot and vehicle (sports car) modes made her a natural for hit-and-run missions. And while her unpredictability and spontaneity sometimes grated with Cy-Kill, who even at his most flexible tended to go by-the-book, it also made her a formidable foe to the enemy whenever she'd spring one of her surprises on them.

Now Cy-Kill turned to face his warriors and came to a stop. "I'll get straight to the point." he declared. "We have been given our most challenging mission to date: a band of Renegades has managed to breach the citadel in Gobotalis, and they have taken the councilors hostage. Our orders are to capture those Renegades by any means necessary, while at the same time minimizing collateral damage and preventing any of the hostages from being killed. That means teamwork and mutual cooperation are of paramount importance -- so, no hot-dogging...HEAT SEEKER...and no wild stunts...SPARKY. Have I made myself understood?"

"SIR, YES, SIR!!" replied the warriors in unison.

"Good." said Cy-Kill, allowing himself a rare smile. "Very good."

Two hours later, Force Five was brazenly storming the citadel. Cy-Kill had decided that the direct approach would work best. There was no room, he felt, in a situation like this, to stretch out the already unsuccessful negotiations, or to attempt a too-complicated sneak attack. The streets surrounding the citadel had long ago been cleared of civilians by the local authorities, and Force Five had been authorized to proceed without holding back. Which suited Cy-Kill's band of warriors just fine.

As Heat-Seeker, in his fighter jet mode, flew far above the ground in circles, awaiting Cy-Kill's command to move in, Blaster and Dozer converted from vehicle to robot modes and opened fire on the outside of the citadel with their built-in plasma-ray weapons, laying down cover which allowed Cy-Kill and Sparky -- the latter taking point -- to speed in their vehicle modes towards the entrance of the citadel.

They had thought themselves to be prepared for anything, but even with all the battles Force Five had fought, enemy strategies could sometimes still be unpredictable. So was the case here. A massively built Renegade appropriately named Tank, who was even more intimidating in vehicle mode, came charging out of the citadel, his powerful built-in cannons blazing as they launched projectiles at the Guardians. Cy-Kill and Sparky both managed to dodge and swerve their way through the resulting explosions, but just barely.

Cy-Kill transmitted a coded signal to Heat-Seeker, commanding him to dive-bomb Tank and put the Renegade out of commission, only for Heat-Seeker to reply that he was already occupied, thanks to an unfamiliar Renegade with a fighter-plane vehicle mode who had seemingly anticipated Heat-Seeker's presence, and engaged him in a dogfight. Cy-Kill then ordered Heat-Seeker to lead his opponent a far outside the city as he could, so as to minimize the danger of collateral damage. Force Five's commander knew that a lack of air support would make the battle more difficult, but he felt deep down that he had made the right call.

As an alternative measure, Cy-Kill ordered Dozer, still in robot mode, to make like a juggernaut and attack Tank by leaping at the Renegade and pummeling him. Cy-Kill reasoned that the Renegades were most likely expecting Blaster, whose vehicle mode was, after all, a missile tank, to move into the fray, and that by sending Dozer instead, he had sprung a surprise on the Renegades which would keep them off-balance long enough for the Guardians to take them down.

But, once again, Cy-Kill was proven wrong. It was he and Sparky who were thrown off-balance when Screw Head, a Renegade with a bulky drill tank mode, emerged from beneath the ground, forcing the two Guardians to make sharp turns in order to keep themselves from colliding into him. Sparky flipped over, while Cy-Kill crashed into the nearest building's front wall. As Screw Head converted to his robot mode, he chuckled smugly at what he regarded as two hapless Guardians easily taken care of. But Sparky recovered much faster than Screw Head expected, and converted to her robot mode. Before Screw Head could make a move to defend himself, Sparky had already fired at him point-blank with her built-in weapons. Screw Head went down like a ton of bricks.

Cy-Kill was proud of Sparky for her intrepid save, while also conceding that whoever was leading this Renegade squad was a very good strategist indeed, but there was no time to think further about these things. Having finished converting to robot mode, Force Five's leader turned his head in the direction of the entrance to the citadel, and was confronted by the sight of two more Renegades running outside to challenge the Guardians. The Renegades, one female with black, red, and white markings and a bright purple-and-red face, the other male with blue-and-white markings and a face that was featureless except for his visor, were both temporarily slowed down as they moved to avoid getting crushed by Tank and Dozer, who were wrestling savagely with each other. This gave Cy-Kill and Sparky the window in time they needed to return to their vehicle modes.

Unfortunately, the two Renegades both turned out to have vehicle modes which were extremely fast and resilient cars, the female a racecar, and the male a dune buggy. The former rammed Sparky's car mode with tremendous force, denting the Guardian's entire left side; as Sparky lay still, too damaged to return to robot mode, the female Renegade laughed the loudest, most bloodcurdling laugh imaginable. Cy-Kill, for his part, managed to avoid getting creamed by the male Renegade, but then found himself struggling to outrace the Renegade, as even though Cy-Kill's motorcycle mode could achieve impressive speeds within seconds, it still appeared to not be enough.

Instinctively, Cy-Kill changed his strategy, doubling back and racing past his surprised Renegade pursuer, who had no choice but to double back himself, and try to catch up to Cy-Kill. This, unknown to the Renegade, was just what Cy-Kill had been hoping for. As he got closer to the point where the chase had started, he saw the female Renegade sadistically ramming her racecar mode's front end into Sparky's already-wrecked form. Enraged, Cy-Kill pushed his speed as far as he could. But when he reached the female Renegade, he didn't attack her. Instead, and with perfect precision timing, Cy-Kill converted to robot mode while he was still a short distance from the female Renegade, and used the rocket boosters built into the soles of his feet to propel himself into the air, making a clean arc above her and landing a safe distance away on his feet. Cy-Kill was still close enough to the action to witness his improvised plan coming to fruition. The male Renegade had, as Cy-Kill had predicted, been unable to halt the momentum he had built while chasing after Cy-Kill at top speed, and his dune buggy mode could not avoid colliding explosively with the female Renegade's racecar mode.

Hearing the noise of an aircraft flying above him and getting closer, Cy-Kill turned around just in time to see the Renegade with the fighter-plane mode dive-bombing him. The Renegade shot at Cy-Kill with his rapid-fire guns, to devastating effect on the surrounding streets and buildings. Fortunately for Cy-Kill, he had managed to find cover in an alleyway, with only seconds to spare.

The fighter-plane Renegade landed in the middle of the shattered street and converted to robot mode, his red eyes glowing menacingly as he surveyed the carnage which had taken place outside the citadel. He then approached Tank, who had just finished giving Dozer a thorough pounding, and Screw Head, who had recovered from Sparky's attack and was back on his feet. As they huddled to decide their next move, they were bombarded with a powerful missile, which had seemingly come out of nowhere. The explosion scattered the Renegades, and left them lying on their backs. Blaster, who had wisely kept his distance from the fray until what he knew was just the right moment, came rolling down the street in his missile tank mode. Once he was satisfied that all five Renegades were down for the count, he converted to robot mode in time to see Cy-Kill walking towards him. Despite having ultimately won this battle, both Guardians knew this was a pyrrhic victory, what with Dozer smashed and Sparky mangled; and the first words which came out of Cy-Kill's mouth confirmed Blaster's worst fears -- "I radioed Heat-Seeker, and he is in a bad state; the flying Renegade managed to shoot him down. Once we have the Renegades bound in neuro-clamps, we shall have to search for where he landed."

Blaster sighed resignedly, while Cy-Kill shook his head morosely. They then heard one of the fallen Renegades speak to them. It turned out to be the Renegade with the fighter-plane mode. "I congratulate you, Cy-Kill." he said. "You have proven yourself worthy of your reputation as both a fighter and a commander." After a brief pause during which his eyes narrowed sinisterly, he added, "But we shall soon meet again on the battlefield, and you will find me ready to bring you a resounding defeat."

"And just who do you think you are??" asked Cy-Kill indignantly.

"My name is Zero." replied the Renegade. "Remember it well."

Zero then went silent and closed his eyes, clearly having used up the last of his strength for his taunt. Cy-Kill stood over him for what seemed an eternity, ruminating over Zero's every defiant word, until Blaster spoke up, declaring, "Don't let him get to you, Sarge. Like every Renegade, he's all talk."

"Yes." agreed Cy-Kill tentatively, for though he did not admit it out loud, he knew very well that Zero's undeniable strategic skills had left Force Five, and himself in particular, reeling after their first mission whose outcome could only be called a qualified success. Perhaps, thought Cy-Kill, the time had come to rethink his approach to war and reevaluate his priorities.

***************

Without warning, Cy-Kill was jolted back to the present day when a flat, emotionless voice announced to him that the automated repair systems had completed their work. As he lifted himself off the slab he had been lying on top of, he ruminated on the last thought that had come to his mind before the memories faded away:

"So much has changed since then...and yet, so little has changed since then."

It had become clear in Cy-Kill's mind that the Guardian-Renegade war for control of Gobotron was an entity unto itself, chewing up and spitting out expendable cannon fodder, and that anyone who thought themselves above expendability was a complete and utter fool. No, Cy-Kill thought, the time had come, just as it had all those years ago, for him to shift not only his priorities, but his allegiances as well. In the case of the latter, he had decided he must break away altogether from the all-consuming, never-ending conflict.

And so it came to be that Cy-Kill approached Exoplanet Alpha's own Astro Beam projector and set the coordinates for the Gobotron planetary capital of Gobotalis -- a one-way trip. Cy-Kill remained stoically resigned to his fate as the Astro Beam whisked him away to his ultimate destiny.

When Cy-Kill abruptly materialized on a busy street in Gobotalis, the civilian Gobots shouted and pointed at him, then fled in terror at what they assumed were sinister intentions for his presence there. But Cy-Kill betrayed no emotion of any sort as he merely stood and waited for the inevitable, until, at last, the inevitable made its arrival, in the form of Leader-1 and Turbo charging toward him, by air and by land respectively. The two head Guardian field operatives, oblivious of Cy-Kill's true motivations, assumed and prepared for the worst as they both converted to robot form and took their positions to confront whatever Cy-Kill's next move would be.

So just imagine Leader-1's surprise when, rather than attack him, defy him, or taunt him, Cy-Kill said to him, "Greetings...old friend. I have come here to Gobotron so that I may surrender to the Guardians."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to the memory of Cy-Kill's voice actor, Bernard Erhard (1934-2001.)
> 
> Cy-Kill was revealed to have originally been a Guardian in the flashback-driven episode "Et Tu, Cy-Kill." He was also shown in that same episode to have once been a close friend of Leader-1, whose good faith Cy-Kill brutally betrayed when he, and his fellow rebel Guardian Fitor, both defected to the Renegades.
> 
> Crasher & Cop-Tur's loyalty to Cy-Kill was explained in a flashback in the episode "Et Tu, Cy-Kill!", where he liberated them from imprisonment by the Guardians, shortly after he decided to defect to the Renegades, but before he betrayed Leader-1. Cy-Kill made Crasher and Cop-Tur swear to never forget what he had done for them, and to be unwaveringly loyal to him from then on.
> 
> Though they are never referred to by name in this chapter (a choice I made because I felt it emphasized Cy-Kill's and the other members of Force Five's unfamiliarity with them), the two Renegades with land vehicle modes are Crasher and Buggy-Man (the latter was originally intended to reappear later in the present day in this same story. A change in my plans now calls for Buggy-Man to appear in my next Gobots fan fiction, scheduled for sometime in 2017.) Obviously, this Crasher appearance takes place before the events from "Et Tu, Cy-Kill", described in the note just before this one.
> 
> The name Force Five from Gobotron is a homage to a pretty decent live-action movie set during World War II, "Force Ten from Navarone", the belated sequel to a very good (if overlong) live-action movie set during World War II, "The Guns of Navarone."
> 
> Should readers have any remaining questions about this chapter, I would advise them to please visit the web's best "Challenge of the GoBots" resource:
> 
> http://counter-x.net/gobots/challenge/index.html


End file.
